“…But even beyond his seat, you now have the Congressman who’s out because he bought cocaine. Here in Washington, you’ve got the kissing Congressman. You’ve got this now. It begins to develop a sort of narrative that may make it trouble for some of his Republican colleagues.

But in fact the catastrophe may have been set in motion by a warm, wet year over Greenland in 1908, resulting in greater snow accumulation. Writing in the journal Weather, Grant Bigg and David Wilton of Sheffield University explain how the snow soaked through cracks in the ice sheet, encouraging excess iceberg calving over the following few years. Soberingly, global warming has increased iceberg hazard greatly in recent decades, making years like 1912 more the norm than the exception.

Our theater company, all for One productions, is entering tech week for our upcoming stage production adapted from George Orwell’s Nineteen-Eighty-Four…so naturally it’s the subject uppermost in my mind, even on a Sunday.

We’ve had some great conversations as a cast while working on this script. One thing we’ve wrestled with is the hopelessness in the story.all for One does not typically choose to tell hopeless stories. So why are we doing this one?

We’ve identified several aspects of the story which audiences today may relate to: loss of privacy; the narrowing of language; and revisionist history. We’ve talked about the fact that other countries–notably North Korea–are already experiencing a hell on earth which is quite similar to the world described in Orwell’s book. Continue reading →

Rear Window has been one of my all-time favorite movies from the very first time I saw it.

To me, it’s Alfred Hitchcock’s masterpiece: memorable, endlessly watchable, and nerve-wracking. For one thing, I wanted to live on that gigantic set: it was spectacular. Didn’t hurt that the film starred not only Jimmy Stewart, who oozed sincerity from every pore, but also Grace Kelly, who vied for my teenage heart with Maureen O’Hara (Maureen usually won that one, though: I had a weakness for redheads back then).

The movie’s premise is simple enough: Jeff (Stewart), a photographer with a broken leg who’s recuperating in his New York City apartment, spends his time spying on his neighbors from his window and becomes convinced one of them has committed murder.

Yet again, behavior which was once the hallmark of our nation is being eradicated. We’ve touched on this in the past (in “Land of the Fearful; Home of the Meek“), but the examples keep coming, with no end in sight. In a different time, the people listed below would be considered “brave” or “courageous” by almost any measure.

But today?

Well, do you recall the story of 20-year-old volunteer EMT Stephen Sawyer? He was the only one around when a call came in about a 4-year-old who was having a seizure:

(via Fox News) – “…After making several unsuccessful calls for ambulances, Sawyer said he made the decision to drive the ambulance to save the child – violating the rule that only people age 21 or older can drive the emergency vehicle…”

This Easter helped me put some things I’ve been thinking about into perspective.

I realize that we’re up against some seriously evil powers intent on destroying everything decent in our nation, with good people and institutions all that stands in their way. However, we can’t defeat those who wish us harm all by ourselves, and must turn to God if we expect to win this fight for the soul of America.

Here’s a test: just Google “teacher student abuse“. You’ll get millions of classroom statutory rape articles. If you Google “teacher student sex“, you get more… a LOT more.

Like this one:

(via WTSP News) – “…For the first time, we are hearing from the Polk County school district about a Lakeland teacher who, according to police, admitted to having sex with her 17-year-old student. 10 News has learned critical red flags may have been missed with Jennifer Fichter because the Polk County school superintendent said she falsified her employment application….”